Tax authorities and the Treasury have teamed up to launch a “Get My Payment” web application, which will make it easier for some Americans to get their economic impact payments quickly.
The app is expected to go live on April 17. It will let people provide direct deposit information to the IRS so their pandemic relief funds, officially called “economic impact payments,” can be deposited into their bank accounts directly, instead of them having to wait for a check in the mail.
“People who don’t have a return filing obligation can use this tool to give us basic information so they can receive their Economic Impact Payments as soon as possible,” said IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig, in a statement. “The IRS and Free File Alliance have been working around the clock to deliver this new tool to help people.”
The IRS said that most people will start getting the economic impact payments automatically starting next week.
“Eligible taxpayers who filed tax returns for 2019 or 2018 will receive the payments automatically. Automatic payments will also be sent in the near future to those people receiving Social Security retirement, survivors, disability (SDDI), or survivor benefits and Railroad Retirement benefits,” the agency said.
This new app is meant for people who did not file a tax return for 2018 or 2019 and who don’t receive Social Security retirement, disability (SSDI), survivor, or Railroad Retirement benefits.
People who fall into the above category and are eligible for an economic impact payment but who don’t want to wait for a check in the mail will be able to visit IRS.gov and go to the section that says: “Non-Filers: Enter Payment Info Here.”
There they will need to provide some basic information like their name and Social Security number. They will also be able to enter bank account information that the IRS will use to deposit their impact payment directly. Otherwise, the agency will simply send eligible recipients a physical check by mail.
The app will also let people track the status of their economic impact payment, including the date their payment is scheduled to be deposited into their bank account or mailed to them.
The agency said, starting next week, eligible taxpayers will automatically receive an economic impact payment of up to $1,200 for individuals or $2,400 for married couples and $500 for each qualifying child.
The IRS said that using the new app to get the payment will not result in any tax liabilities.
“The IRS does not initiate contact with taxpayers by email, text messages or social media channels to request personal or financial information. We urge taxpayers to be on the lookout for scammers and email phishing attempts about the COVID-19 and Economic Impact Payments,” Treasury said.
This follows an IRS announcement on Thursday saying that tax authorities are extending more tax deadlines to July 15.
Individual taxpayers who for some reason expect not to make that deadline can request an extension to push the deadline back to Oct. 15.
Last month, the IRS said taxpayers generally have until July 15 to file and pay federal income taxes originally due on April 15. Friday’s notice expands this relief to all taxpayers that have a filing or payment deadline falling on or after April 1 and before July 15.
“Individuals, trusts, estates, corporations and other non-corporate tax filers qualify for the extra time,” the IRS said.
While individual taxpayers can request an extension to Oct. 15, any extension to file is not an extension to pay any taxes owed, the IRS added.